When did you first consider yourself a writer?
When I was about eight years old, I wrote my first “book” called The Fantasy Club. I purchased a blank white hardcover book from my teacher and filled it with a silly story about being stuck in a museum overnight. I pretty much stole it from a TV show, though, but it was my first attempt at serious writing.
Why did you choose to write in your particular field or genre?
I love writing fantasy because of all its exquisite possibilities. I can create new worlds, new cultures, new creatures…my only limit is my imagination. Plus, I have always loved a lot of staples of the genre, including fairy tales. This is a genre full of waking dreams.
Are you a full-time or part-time writer, and how does that affect your writing?
I’m a part-time writer with a day job in teaching. It isn’t easy, because teaching exhausts me, so I have to find a way to motivate myself to work through the fatigue to get stuff done. I have a hard time with work-life balance because grading takes me forever…if I have too much to grade, the writing definitely doesn’t get done.
What have you written so far?
Before I started writing novels, I was a playwright and composer. I wrote a stage play, In the Hands of Mr. Hyde, and a completely original musical called Melancholia. Both were produced at the local branch of the Ohio State University. Then, I decided to switch to fiction and went to Seton Hill University for their Writing Popular Fiction program. My first novel was my graduate thesis, The Name and the Key. It remains unpublished (but I am rewriting it and expanding it into a trilogy). My YA fantasy novel Son of the Siren debuted July 2024. It is my first novel publication.
Do you work with an outline or plot sketch, or do you prefer to let a general idea guide your writing?
While I would prefer to work with an outline or plot sketch, I’ve not been able to do this. A general idea takes form, but I never know how to shape it in advance, so I sort of meander through a plot and let characters take control. At best, I might have some bullet points of major things I want to happen; at worst, I have nothing at all and just wing it.
What role does research play in your writing?
I research frequently. Even though I write fantasy and can set it in any time period or culture I want, I usually choose a specific point in history on which to base my work. For example, Son of the Siren was based on Tudor England. The clothing, food, layout of the castle, and the courtly dances all come from that time. The book is fantastical enough that you might not see this influence, but if you know your history, some of it should be a little familiar.
How long does it take you to write a book?
Unfortunately, I am a very slow writer. My graduate thesis took me two and a half years to write. Son of the Siren took two years, and then another year on top of that doing edits based on beta reader feedback. I know if I want a writing career, this pace isn’t sustainable, so I’m trying very hard to speed things up.
Did you independently or “self” publish, or did you go the “traditional” publishing route, and why?
I went the traditional route, although for a long time I was working on Son of the Siren to be self-published. I spent so much money on things like the book cover and beta reading services, and I simply ran out of cash, while there was still so much to do for the book. On top of that, while doing research, I realized that there were just some things I didn’t know how to do or felt comfortable doing. So, I switched to traditional publishing, knowing they would do some things better than I ever could. That, and money flows to the author!
If you went the “traditional” publishing route, how did you get your book deal?
Sometimes I still ask myself that! First, I queried 47 agents, and when one of them offered, I withdrew my pending queries (knocking the total down to 31). I had a lot of agents decline the book, and I was getting discouraged until my agent Rick Lewis offered representation. He worked his butt off to get me a deal, and after many rejections, Oliver Heber Books offered. They’re a small press but with a roster of impressive authors, and I felt so lucky to work with them. I still feel that way!
What is your next project?
I am working on a YA fantasy trilogy: The Name and the Key, The Step and the Walk, and The Fear and the Flame. The story begins when Lily finds her mother’s corpse floating in the marshes, and how her mother haunts her in every reflective surface, begging for Lily to “open the door.” Lily’s friend Andresh, a powerful magician, may know how to break this curse, but his own secrets may destroy them both.
Want to learn more about Kristina and the book?
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